1960 Squaw Valley

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VIII Olympic Winter Games

Eight of the 56 Canadian athletes who participated in the 1960 Games in Squaw Valley, California, were figure skaters. Canadian champion Donald Jackson won the bronze medal in men’s singles, Otto and Maria Jelinek finished fourth in pairs competition, and another Canadian pair added a gold medal to a string of international successes: Barbara Wagner and Robert Paul put on a marvelous skating display highlighted by a breathtaking death spiral that won them first place votes from every judge. A few days after their Olympic gold medal performance, the pair won their fourth consecutive world championship.

Anne Heggtveit, who at the age of 21 had 14 years of competitive skiing behind her, became the first Canadian to win a gold medal in skiing by crossing the finish line 3.3 seconds ahead of her nearest rival.

When the United States beat Canada 2-1 on the hockey rink, it was the Canadian team’s only loss of the tournament, but it was enough to drop Canada to the silver medal position behind the U.S.

History will be made in 2016 when Rio de Janeiro, Brazil hosts the Games of the XXXI Olympiad, marking the first time that a South American country will welcome the world to an Olympic Games. It is also just the third time that the Games will be held in the southern hemisphere, following Melbourne 1956 and Sydney 2000.